What to Do After a Work Vehicle Crash

A crash is frightening and confusing, and what you do in the first minutes affects your health, your job and any claim that follows. Whether you drive a company pickup, a delivery van or a tractor-trailer, a clear plan helps you stay calm and do the right things in the right order.

• Drivers
• Fleet Managers
• All Workers

Step 1: Stay safe and stop

• Stop. Leaving the scene of a crash is a crime in every state, especially if someone is hurt. Turn on the hazard lights.
• Check yourself. Are you hurt? If you may have a neck, back or head injury, stay still and wait for help, unless the vehicle is on fire or in danger.
• If it’s safe and the vehicle can move, and the crash is minor, move out of the traffic lanes to the shoulder or a safe spot, as local law directs. For serious crashes or injuries, leave the vehicles where they are if moving them is unsafe or the law says to leave them.
• Turn off the engine, set the parking brake and, if there is fuel leaking or smoke, get everyone away from the vehicle and upwind.
• Watch for danger from traffic, fire, downed power lines and leaking fuel or hazardous materials. See Downed Power Lines.
• On a highway, don’t stand in the road or between vehicles. Get behind a barrier or far off the shoulder.

Step 2: Call for help

• Call 911 if anyone is hurt, if there is a fire, hazmat, major damage, a blocked road, or any doubt. Give your exact location, the number of vehicles and injured people, and any hazards. See Calling 911 from a Jobsite.
• For even minor crashes, call the police so there is a report. Many states require reports for injury or damage over a set amount, and insurers want one.
• Stay on the line and follow the dispatcher’s instructions.

Step 3: Give first aid

• Check on everyone, including people in other vehicles. Give first aid within your training. See First Aid Basics, Bleeding Control and CPR & AED.
• Don’t move seriously injured people unless they are in immediate danger, such as fire, since moving can worsen spinal injuries. See Spinal Injuries.
• Keep the injured warm and calm, and don’t give food or drink.
• Get medical care for yourself, even if you feel fine. Adrenaline can hide injuries, and neck and head injuries may show up hours or days later. See Head Injuries.

Step 4: Protect the scene

• Set out warning devices if safe: flares, cones or reflective triangles. Commercial drivers must place warning devices within 10 minutes of stopping on a roadway, at set distances (49 CFR 392.22). See Truck Crash Response.
• Don’t clean up or move debris unless needed for safety. Leave vehicles in place if police ask. See Preserving an Incident Scene.
• If hazardous materials may be involved, stay away, keep others back, and tell responders what you carry. Use the shipping papers and the Emergency Response Guidebook. See Hazmat Placards.

Step 5: Collect information

• Exchange information with other drivers: names, phone numbers, addresses, driver license and plate numbers, vehicle makes and models, insurance company and policy numbers. Show your own, as your employer’s policy allows.
• Get police details: officers’ names and badge numbers, the report number and where to get a copy.
• Take photos and video of all vehicles, damage, license plates, the road, skid marks, signs, signals, weather and injuries, from many angles. If your vehicle has a dash camera, save the video and tell your employer. See Dash Cams & Telematics.
• Find witnesses and get names and phone numbers.
• Write notes: time, place, direction, speed, what you saw, the conditions, what was said. Do it soon, while it’s fresh.

• Don’t argue, and don’t blame the other driver or yourself. Don’t say “I’m sorry” in a way that sounds like admitting fault, and don’t guess about causes. Stick to the facts.
• Don’t sign anything except police or insurance forms you understand.
• Don’t discuss the crash on social media. See Social Media & Your Job.
• Don’t agree to a private settlement at the scene.
• Don’t accept money or deals from anyone who approaches you at the scene.

Step 6: Tell your employer and report

• Notify your supervisor or dispatcher right away, following your company’s crash reporting procedure, and fill out the crash report. Employers must keep records of work-related injuries. See Recordkeeping & Reporting.
• If someone died, or three or more people were hospitalized, or a worker was hospitalized, employers must report to OSHA within the deadlines (8 hours for a death, 24 hours for a hospitalization, amputation or loss of an eye). Traffic crashes on public streets may be treated differently, so ask the employer. See How OSHA Investigates Fatalities.
• Report injuries as work injuries so you can use workers’ compensation. See Filing a Workers’ Comp Claim.
• Tell your own insurance company if required, and the other drivers’ insurers will contact you. Your employer’s insurer and lawyer may want to talk to you first.

CDL drivers: post-accident testing

• Under federal rules (49 CFR 382.303), a CDL driver must be tested for alcohol and drugs after certain crashes: any crash with a fatality, and crashes where the driver gets a citation and someone is injured and treated away from the scene, or a vehicle is towed.
• The alcohol test should be done as soon as possible, ideally within 2 hours, and not later than 8 hours. The drug test must be within 32 hours. Employers must have a plan for this.
• Don’t drink or take any substances after a crash until you’ve been tested, unless a doctor directs it for medical care. See Drug & Alcohol Testing.
• Carriers must keep an accident register. See Fleet Safety Programs.

After the crash

• Take care of your health. Follow up with a doctor. Stress and trauma are common. See Trauma & Stress After a Serious Incident.
• Review what happened with your employer without blame. Companies should look for root causes and fixes. See Incident Investigation.
• Keep copies of the police report, photos, medical records, bills and messages.
• Talk to a lawyer if you were seriously hurt, if there’s a dispute about fault or a claim against you, or you’re unsure of your rights. See Where to Get Help.
• Pets and passengers need care too. See After a Crash and Traveling with Pets.

Crash response checklist

• Stopped, hazard lights on, engine off; moved to safety only if it is safe and allowed
• 911 called if there are injuries, fire, hazmat or blocked lanes; police report requested
• First aid given; seriously injured people not moved; I get medical care myself
• Warning devices placed; scene left as is for police and investigators
• Information, photos, witnesses and notes collected; no admissions of fault
• Employer notified; crash report filed; post-crash testing done if I hold a CDL and the rules apply

Last updated: October 4, 2026